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Jake Paul's mouth gaped wide open, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe after a devastating right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the severity of the blow sank in to his rattled senses.

"The fans didn't pay to see this garbage," snapped the referee, encapsulating the sorry spectacle much more succinctly than anyone else managed to.

Trapped in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was lost in an completely dazed moment.

So that is what it feels, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the consequences of a proper power shot meant Paul could not get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the contest to a halt. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a dull ache radiated through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how hard, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of competition.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for Joshua

Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive amid the chaos. After his hollow victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that hinted at a precise and deadly execution when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed hesitant and crude for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, shaped the outcome. Without the gas to flee any more, and reduced to slipping to the canvas as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered defenseless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the vicious ending, but, up to that point, he had seemed a mournful imitation of the boxer he was in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"That was not the best display," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than expected, but the right hand finally found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an explanation for his own labored showing. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, referencing his previous defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

The Future: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview that followed, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful impression of his domestic rival as he called for a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the far side of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most compelling big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted king of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rising force. The young British heavyweight likely have required less than half the number of rounds that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans receives what the public desires, and that certainly means more low-quality celebrity contests. Paul seemed genuinely proud and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That lighthearted nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a equally diminished force, showed that Paul's brazen audacity is undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate someone else with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before departing to the medical facility, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more bleak symbol of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bravado and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I love this sport and I'm going to return and keep on winning."